NATIONAL science agency CSIRO has played what it describes as an “important role” in evaluating heat-tolerant COVID-19 vaccines developed by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and biotech start-up Mynvax.

In a report published last month in the peer-reviewed “ACS Infectious Diseases Journal”, researchers showed the vaccine formulations triggered a strong immune response in mice, protected hamsters from the virus, and remained stable at 37°C up to a month and at 100°C for up to 90 minutes.

Most vaccines require refrigeration to remain effective, such as Oxford-AstraZeneca, which must be kept between 2-8°C and Pfizer, which requires specialised cold storage at -70°C.

CSIRO says its scientists assessed vaccinated mice sera (blood samples) for efficacy against key coronavirus variants, including the Delta variant currently spreading globally.

“Our data shows that all formulations of Mynvax tested result in antibodies capable of consistent and effective neutralisation of the Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern,” said Dr SS Vasan, project leader and co-author.

CSIRO’s evaluation of the different Mynvax formulations will support selection of the most suitable candidate for planned human clinical trials in India later this year.

CSIRO’s Health and Biosecurity Director, Dr Rob Grenfell, said the pandemic has demonstrated the need for global scientific collaboration to address the urgent demand for multiple cost-effective COVID-19 vaccines and treatments.

“Since the start of the pandemic, CSIRO has played a crucial role in fighting COVID-19 by conducting preclinical evaluation of two COVID-19 vaccines including Oxford-AstraZeneca, tracking emerging variants of concern, and monitoring wastewater to detect hotspots in the community.,” he said.

“A thermostable or ‘warm vaccine’ is critical for remote or resource-limited locations with extremely hot climates which lack reliable cold storage supply chains, including regional communities in Australia’s outback and the Indo-Pacific region.”